Oh My! FIRE!

Well there's no way I can move my tank to a different plug. So....yeah....I'm gonna try this and hope it works!! Wish me luck!

 

A bit unlikely agreed. Keep mind, though, that if the whole shebang is plugged into a single GFCI receptacle that the problem would only have to be with one of the 9 components (3 ballasts, 3 pendants, 3 bulbs).

It's hard to tell, but if I was there, I'd isolate the neutral to the panel to confirm that it's not shared, then I'd put an ammeter on the hot and neutral, and go from there. The current should be the same on both wires of that particular circuit.

With electrical related stuff, there's really a lot more involved than most folks realize. It could be a loose wirenut, an adjacent circuit inducing voltage into the circuit in question, or something else yet.

You might start by ruling out the GFCI by replacing it. For the average person, that would be the easiest route for starters.

 

Yeah....I think I'll start with replacing the GFCI. haha my electrical skills are limited to putting in new outlets and switches...

 

I used 2 different GFI's, and all ballasts / bulbs /pendants were fired independently from each other. So each trio (pendant / bulb / ballast) would have a problem, with one of the components, independently from the other 2 sets. Hence the reason why I do not think it's the equipment I use.

 

When you say "fired independently" from a GFCI standpoint, that would have to mean that all 9 components are plugged into 9 different GFCI circuits, which isn't the case.

However, if you've run each bulb/ballast/pendant combo independently (just one combo connected to the circuit) for a couple of weeks, and don't experience the problem with any of the 3 setups; but do when all 3 setups are running at the same time, it could be the combined amp draw of the 3, creating an imbalance upon startup. A ballast will have a very slight inrush current that will occur only at that time. With the three at once, maybe that's the issue.

Question: do you have all your halides coming on at the same instant? Also, does the tripping usually occur upon startup, or not all the time?

 

My tripping is at start up...what does that mean?

 

I do not think I was clear, sorry. I mean I unplugged the other two, and ran each trio separately. In other words, the left one was the only set plugged in. The GFI tripped. Then the middle- the GFI tripped. Then the right - the GFI tripped. The GFI was a 20 amp unit and all 3 only draw around 7.5 amps.

 

Then that would point to something other than your lighting. It might be the circuit from the panel to the fishtank. Do you have another nearby circuit that you could plug the lighting into, to see if that causes a trip?

I know if the other circuit isn't GFI, it would be impractical, but I'm trying to answer your questions from a diagnostic point of view, rather than a practical one, Zach.


@KC, if they only trip at startup, there might be an issue with a component (bulb, fixture, ballast, pendant, etc.)

 

Okay, thanks for all the help!! I'm not allowed to give out any more karma for awhile, so the forum tells me, so I'll get ya soon!

 

It may be that the GFCI is getting RFI (radio frequency interference) from the electronic ballast. If the ballasts were not filtered correctly (I'm guessing they may not be, if they don't have FCC/ CISPR labeling) then you would get RFI on the mains cable. This conducted RFI can be unbalanced on both sides (neutral and hot) and can trip a GFCI.

Reefsparky, I'm not an electrician, per se, but I apprenticed with an EE and work as an audio engineer/ technician. I have worked as an audio technician and recording engineer since 1997 for various recording studios, and now work as Technical Manager of a major guitar amplifier company... I am not an expert in EE theory beyond the basics, but I'm pretty well versed and a quick study. I do consider myself an expert in analog audio circuits, however ...

I test my company's amps at EMC/ FCC testing labs and have been responsible for implementing RF mains filtering to some of our new product line recently.

I have posted a graph depicting the RF plot of the conducted emissions that would be found n the mains cable. The Red line designates the hot lead and the blue line designates neutral. You can see in the graph that they are unbalanced, but passing FCC emissions requirements. I would not do anything to balance this any further, however, it could be responsible for tripping a GFCI because the GFCI may sense this unbalanced HF emission as an unbalanced line.

The PSU for your ballast looks and operates very similar to that of my amp's PSU, in fact they are very similarly designed to do about the same thing, which is why I'm using this as a comparison.
make sense?

maybe reefsparky can put that into layman's terms for me...